Case Study: Automating process for frontline police officers
Cumbria Constabulary is the territorial police force tasked with policing the county of Cumbria, in North West England. Durham Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing County Durham and Darlington, in North East England.
With policing changing at pace and public expectation high, Cumbria and Durham Constabularies both recognised a need to modernise their ways of working to succeed in providing their citizens with an effective, accessible and value for money service.
After initial introductions made through a Microsoft connection, Tisski got to work exploring Cumbria Constabulary’s requirements before demonstrating how the Microsoft Power Platform – and Power Apps in particular – could be used to deliver a streamlined replacement for a set of applications used by frontline officers.
Tisski also showcased the art of the possible, identifying ways Power Apps could be used to broaden the range of existing applications to help Cumbria overcome other challenges their officers and operational personnel may face in the line of duty.
With Cumbria and Tisski’s partnership now fully established, plans to replace the force’s frontline applications were set in motion. The initial launch incorporated seven apps: a digital ‘pocket notebook’, a means to record statements, and individual apps to access and log information relating to vehicle offences, use of force, sudden death, anti-social behaviour and Covid-19 rule breaches – referred to collectively as the Combined Operational Policing System (COPS) by the team at Cumbria.
By replacing this much-needed set of applications, Tisski has used its Power Apps in Policing offering to streamline Cumbria Constabulary’s processes, in some cases rolling multiple applications into a single, easy-to-access alternative. In making this move, the entire solution can be managed and maintained in-house, helping Cumbria save on licensing costs and reduce the time needed to introduce new features or fields in particular forms.
After hearing of the developments being made for Cumbria, neighbouring constabulary, Durham, expressed an interest in adopting the Power Apps in Policing offering, and became the fourth arm of the partnership between Tisski, Microsoft and Cumbria Constabulary. For Durham, this became their first step into a world supported by frontline applications.
Speaking on behalf of Cumbria and Durham Constabularies, Chief Superintendent Jonathan Blackwell, Digital Data and Technology Command, said: “Working with Tisski has enabled us to achieve in a matter of four months what would have taken a year or more to do.
“They matched our resource commitment leading up to and during go-live to ensure we could provide high quality apps to our frontline users and quickly work through those teething issues during the go-live period.
“It’s not every day you work with an organisation who will give you three releases a day, seven days a week to work together in achieving the end goal.”
With innovation inherent in Microsoft’s offering, Cumbria and Durham have opened the doors to a boundless opportunity to partner with Tisski on the creation of new applications that address the needs of their forces and help them overcome common challenges. Together, they will harness automation and take a forward-thinking approach to develop further functionality that delivers real positive change across their organisations.
The driver? To create original, effective practices which go beyond the simple replacement of paper-based processes and bring something new to the table, for both policing professionals and the citizens they serve.
“What we have deployed now is the first step and gives us a foundation to build upon to provide a quality product to our frontline which will ultimately benefit the communities we serve,” said Chief Superintendent Jonathan Blackwell. “Now we have COPS in place, we can look to the future and how we can develop apps which can be utilised by members of the public.”
Anna Assassa, CEO at Tisski, said: “It’s been fantastic to work alongside not one but two constabularies to create applications which will help our frontline officers and those who support them on a daily basis.
“The best thing about Power Apps in Policing with Tisski is the opportunity it gives Cumbria, Durham and any other UK force to work with our team and develop specialised apps that really cater to their force’s needs and help overcome the challenges they face in their professional lives. Everyone at Tisski is excited to see this offering grow in the coming months and years.”
Author:
Mark Cox, Tisski
Georgie Morgan
Georgie joined techUK as the Justice and Emergency Services (JES) Programme Manager in March 2020, then becoming Head of Programme in January 2022.